BASEBALL

BASEBALL; As Simple As 1-2-3, McGwire Wins Fans

Published: June 12, 1995

McGwire hit three home runs in consecutive at-bats yesterday, and also tied a major league record with five homers in two straight games, leading the Oakland Athletics over the Boston Red Sox, 8-1.

McGwire, who leads the majors with 17 homers, connected against Zane Smith for solo shots in his first three at-bats. All three cleared the Green Monster, including a 463-foot shot on the first pitch he saw and another drive that hit the light tower in left field. "I saw the ball, I put three good swings on the ball, and they left the park," McGwire said. "That's all that matters to me. That, and the fact that we won."

McGwire drew a standing ovation after his third homer. But he struck out swinging at a 3-2 pitch from Mike Maddux in the eighth inning and walked on four pitches from the rookie Jeff Hudson in the ninth.

McGwire said the last time he saw an opposing player get a standing ovation was when Nolan Ryan pitched a no-hitter in Oakland.

"It feels great," he said. Tigers 8, Twins 2

John Flaherty homered twice and drove in four runs, leading visiting Detroit past Minnesota. Todd Steverson and Flaherty hit consecutive home runs in the ninth, and Juan Samuel hit a two-run homer later in the inning off reliever Dave Stevens. Rangers 3, White Sox 2

Juan Gonzalez homered for the second straight game, a two-run shot in the eighth inning that pushed Texas over Chicago at the Ballpark in Arlington. Gonzalez, out 35 games with back problems, hit his second homer of the season as Texas won for the ninth time in 11 games. Expos 10, Giants 8

Rondell White set a Montreal record with six hits, hitting for the cycle and scoring five runs as Montreal beat San Francisco in 13 innings. White went 6-for-7 with two doubles, drove in three runs and stole a base.

White tripled with two outs in the 13th, leading to Tim Laker's two-run triple that gave the Expos a three-game sweep at Candlestick Park for the first time since August 1984. Montreal had a season-high 20 hits. Reds 3, Astros 2

Ron Gant homered with one out in the 10th inning to lift Cincinnati to a four-game sweep of Houston, its first at the Astrodome since 1972. Gant drove a 3-2 pitch from Todd Jones (3-1) into the left-field seats for his 12th homer. Jeff Brantley (3-0) pitched two scoreless innings to win.

IN OTHER GAMES: Albert Belle doubled three times and drove in three runs, Jim Thome and Carlos Baerga homered and Eddie Murray's three singles pulled him within 16 hits of 3,000 as the visiting INDIANS routed the BREWERS, 11-5. . . . Jon Nunnally singled off the glove of the leaping first baseman Ed Sprague with two outs in the 10th inning, lifting the ROYALS over the visiting BLUE JAYS, 3-2. . . . Heathcliff Slocumb struck out Carlos Hernandez with the bases loaded in the home ninth to preserve the PHILLIES' 2-1 victory over the DODGERS. . . . Dante Bichette extended his hitting streak to a club-record 17 games as the ROCKIES beat the CUBS, 5-1, at Wrigley Field. . . . Bernard Gilkey had four hits and scored three runs as the visiting CARDINALS beat the BRAVES, 8-4. . . . In Miami, ninth-inning doubles by Mark Johnson and Nelson Liriano snapped a tie and gave the PIRATES a 4-3 victory over the MARLINS.